It seems everyone from Sandy Alderson to manager Terry Collins are willing to give Oliver Perez every chance to make the 2011 New York Mets team out of spring training. Many fans and some in the front office feel he does not deserve the opportunity because of citing his past transgressions. The only reason he is getting the chance is because of the $12 million owed to him, which is odd since COO Jeff Wilpon…
Every year you hear some variant of the theme that “Spring Training stats are useless.” Yet, each year countless jobs are determined by how well players perform in this period. The Mets this season are no different. Several bullpen jobs are up in the air, a situation made even more competitive with the last-minute addition of Jason Isringhausen to the mix. With the loss of Pedro Feliciano, the Mets have no obvious LOOGY out of…
Yesterday my copy of the Maple Street Press Mets 2011 Annual arrived in the mail. Maple Street Press puts out a host of annuals and they get some of the top names in the blogosphere to contribute to their magazines. The Mets guide features articles by Ted Berg, Toby Hyde, Howard Megdal, Sam Page, Dan Schlossberg and many others. Ike Davis is this year’s cover boy. The cover is sleeker than a season ago. Inside,…
Last year the Mets got strong pitching from their whole staff, particularly their starters. Many felt they overachieved, and with the loss of Johan Santana for at leas half a season, many expect the team’s starters to perform significantly worse in 2011. But so far in the Grapefruit League, the Mets’ starters are performing quite well. Let’s start with the Mets’ 2010 pitching numbers. Overall, the team finished sixth in the National League with a…
1976 TOPPS RANDY TATE It can be hard to distinguish Randy Tate from the Bobbs and Todds and Webbs and Crams and all the other single-syllabled 1970s Mets’ pitchers of no particular report. He has just one major league season to his name, during which he went 5-13 with a 4.45 ERA. He was back in Tidewater in ’76 when this card appeared, and never returned to the majors. What sets Randy Tate apart is…
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Who will be playing second base for the New York Mets this season? Will it be embattled 15-year veteran Luis Castillo, converted outfielder/ first baseman Daniel Murphy, slick glove man Ruben Tejada or utility man Justin Turner? It’s doubtful that any of these players will be a permanent fixture at second base with New York, so what does the future hold? There’s Rule 5 acquisition Brad Emaus. And New York has two decent prospects in…
Ranking right up there with the balk rule, one of the least understood rules in baseball are those pertaining to player options. Each year the option rules determine the fate of many players. This year, several Mets players are out of options and may have a leg up making the major league team out of Spring Training. These include Manny Acosta, Pat Misch and Nick Evans. In Major League Baseball, Rule 11 spells out how…
“Right now, the life on the ball feels better than it did at the same point last year and maybe the year before, and I’m excited about that,” said the 31-year-old Chris Young, who made just 18 starts (including four last season) for the Padres over the previous two years due to shoulder injuries. “Mechanically, I’m farther ahead right now than I’ve been the last couple of years. I know that. I can see the…
For the Mets to have a successful 2011 season, it once again has to get the most it can from the starting rotation. After all, the Mets quietly did have a solid rotation in 2010 and placed 7th in the league in ERA (3.70). We have all heard the need for Mike Pelfrey to establish himself as the staff’s ace after a respectable 2010 campaign. Another refrain we keep hearing is that in order for…
In all of the discussions about the makeup of the Mets’ bullpen, one name keeps getting left out. You would think his first name alone would keep him in the discussion, but Boof Bonser is the forgotten man in this equation. The Mets picked up Bonser on a minor league deal and he’s one of many who are vying to make the team as a reliever. Bonser was a first-round pick of the Giants in…
This time last year, few expected Bobby Parnell to open the year with Triple-A, figuring he had a bullpen spot locked up. But a poor Spring led to an assignment to Buffalo, where he spent the first two-and-a-half months of the year. Could it be déjà vu all over again for Parnell here in 2011? Once again, most people have written Parnell’s name onto the major league roster. He figures to be the team’s eighth…
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